September/October 2003 , Page 34

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Don't do that!

How to avoid the most common mistakes made by defense lawyers

Last month Bill Whitaker provided excellent advice on how to begin your relationship with your client (The Champion, August
2003), correctly reminding us all that the right start is the essential
foundation for constructing the best possible defense. Having made that
good start, however, we must remain vigilant and continue to take the
time and make the hard choices necessary to maintaining that
high-quality defense. Over the 20-plus years that I have been a criminal
defense lawyer, I have seen certain recurrent mistakes that are made by
even the most able and dedicated of our colleagues. This article will
describe four of these commonly made errors in the hope of helping you
to avoid them.

Do not attempt to deny the undeniable or defend the indefensible

I think that this is the most common mistake made by defense lawyers.
The urge is understandable, given that it is our job to defend. When
conf

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